Paint Me Like One of Your French Boos
by TheLilyoftheValley
Summary: HellBoo. She caught his eyes staring at the painting adorning her wall. He hates it, especially after being stuck in paintings before, but with a little convincing, Hellen is sure that she change his mind on the matter...


_(HellBooooooo… _

_Had to make a little oneshot for them. ;P Someone on Twitter vaguely mentioned shipping them, and I went into the game looking for the ship material that caused the initial thought. Found some of that, and my imagination took off as I began to plot out a few little stories for these two._

_Hope you all enjoy!)_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mario, the "Luigi's Mansion" series, or any of its characters. In terms of aesthetic, the Master Suite is my favorite floor. I legit want all that KB merch. **

***Spoilers for some of the paintings in the Master Suite. I don't think there are any other spoilers in this besides just the rooms and some of the decorations you'll see in the Master Suite.***

Paint Me Like One of Your French Boos

She caught his eyes focusing on it.

Red eyes stared at the painting, a small hiss echoing from his fanged mouth as he studied every detail. The little nubs he had for arms drifted up, then fell. His brow, always furrowed in a sort-of anger, widened ever so slightly before furrowing deeper than the usual height it stayed at.

Hellen turned, fear lighting up her ghostly form. Her hand quickly nabbed her powder compact, darting up to her face to put on a quick layer to hide any stress before tucking the little compact away. A strained smile appeared on her face as she mimicked clearing her throat, doing something to catch the attention of the Boo across from her. "Is everything okay, my king?"

King Boo stayed still. Something between a growl and a hiss echoed over the space as his eyes flashed at the portrait.

She looked over his form, her teeth catching her bottom lip as she looked at the piece he was staring at.

It had been a piece she had made when she had first found out about him and his battles with the cowardly Luigi. Vibrant swirls of all different shades of purples whirled around the round form at the bottom center, making him look as if he was the sun in a dark horizon of deep twilight. His arms were stretched towards the sky, mouth wide and caught mid-cackle. He looked powerful, as Hellen thought the King of all Boos should be.

"I've never seen myself in a painting before," he hissed, displeasure dripping from his tone. "Comes with spending too much time being in them."

Her fingers curled as a frown shaped his fanged mouth, the corners tightening downward as a noise came from him-

"And that is because of that horrid professor!" she cried, flying in front of her painting, arms spread to block anything the King might throw at it. She had admittedly spent so much time on it that she was loathe to part with it.

"I don't know if I feel comfortable looking at something that's happened twice now…" he murmured. The furrow in his brow deepened, and Hellen saw his tongue curl as he prepared to lash it out at the painting behind her.

There had to be a way to turn this around.

"Wait!"

He paused, tongue freezing in place.

Hellen cooed as she adjusted her featherless boa, the long article flowing down her graceful arms. "It's that scientist's fault that you feel this way about seeing your wonderful self in such a portrait." Her left wrist gently nestled under her chin and her other hand reached for the larger ghost. "He's robbed you of the experience of seeing your beauty captured for all to see, a few moments captured for a lifetime of people to look upon you and see only power and elegance."

Ghostly fingers cupped the round side of King Boo, and as his eyes flicked between where her fingers rested and where the rest of her form was, Hellen continued on. "If I may inquire… have you ever had someone paint you a portrait? Something that captures the essence of who you are?"

The Boo grumbled, tongue flattening as he relaxed his form ever-so-slightly. "Some painters have. Never liked the first one that tried to."

Hellen clicked her tongue and shook her head. "Oh, that simply can't do." Her hand left the roundness of his side and pressed against her upper chest, just below the rim of her necklace. "If I may, King Boo, may I try painting a portrait of you?" she asked as her eyes glowed. "I have been a patron and practicer of the arts for a long while now, and the current piece in front of you is something I have done in the past. Would you allow me to paint you and perhaps relieve some of that unease you feel when looking at yourself within a frame?"

Silence stretched between them as King Boo hummed. The red eyes studied the illustration on the wall, eyeing the colors and the maniacal laughter his painted self was giving off.

Her fingers lingered at the surface of her contact as stress swept over her form. Underneath her dress, her tail curled, and her lips thinned as she struggled to maintain her composure. She absentmindedly curled the boa around the arm that wasn't reaching for her powder, wrapping herself in fluff to perhaps comfort the sharp "no" she was going to-

"Sure." His face scrunched up and a tiny sliver of pale pink traced a line between his cheeks as he continued to stare up at the painting. "I'll… try it."

"You'll do it?" Surprise appeared on her face before a wave of pure joy replaced it. Her hands clapped together, the sound echoing throughout the small room, and a laugh came from her as she drew out her hands. "You won't regret this, my king," she purred. "I will capture the power and majesty you have been denied of viewing! You will be shown the best side of you, and I look forward to gracing a canvas with your colors!"

King Boo's eyes did a little roll, but the thin line of pink grew just a little more and deepened a shade in color. "You seem so sure…" he said. "You think you can fix my view of paintings and make me like being painted?"

Hellen smiled, floating away from the painting behind her and heading for the door to the Drawing Room, intent on grabbing her art supplies. "I don't think so, my king, I know so." She waved her hand as she watched him whip back around to face the painting. "Give me just one moment…"

* * *

A grumble of annoyance built, starting at a low volume before building and echoing throughout the whole Drawing Room.

Hellen looked around her canvas, casting a glance at the grumpy ghost across from her. "You've been grumbling for a while, my king. Is everything okay?"

"No," he huffed, lowering his arms. The frown that had been on his face for the past hour deepened, and he squirmed in place as impatience showed in his expression. "I've been keeping the same pose for forever, and I hate doing nothing and waiting. How much longer until you're done with it?"

"Not much longer, though we cannot rush perfection." A content smile decorated her face as she swept her brush over the canvas, painting the white highlights over the blue waves. Long swoops ran over the blue and added the depth to the painting that it needed.

King Boo gave another grumble at a lower volume, not enough to echo around the room, but definitely one that Hellen would hear. He had been asked to shrink in size to better accommodate the room size and to not peek at the portrait until it was done. The small stature he sported was something he wasn't too happy with, and the pose he had been holding for two hours had been fine for him during the first hour before it had fallen apart.

She rode over the arc of blue with a flick of her wrist, adding another white highlight to another section of the painting. A musical hum, a melody she remembered when she had been in the realm of the living, filled the air as she dabbed her paintbrush against the palette. Colors ran over the wooden surface, blending together in little pockets and creating new shades to add to the beauty of the illustration-in-progress.

A little whoosh sounded close to her ear, and instantly her hand placed the brush against the easel and clapped a hand over King Boo's curious eyes. "Ah, ah, ah, you agreed to no peeking until it was done."

He backed away, more grumblings coming from his mouth as he hovered over to where he had been. The little Boo frowned before going back to the position Hellen had asked him to take: arms outstretched, tongue hanging out slightly, eyes glowing with glee, an evil smile on his face as he looked to the right of him-

King Boo lasted a second before impatience overtook him.

"This is stupid," he spat out, disdain lacing each word. The little arms lifted and fell at a quick pace as the little ghost floated back-and-forth in front of the couch. "Is there anything else I could do in the meantime while you paint?"

Her hum deepened then heightened in pitch as Hellen remembered more of the song. "I am almost done, my king, and then you will be able to view the final product for yourself."

Her fingers itched for her powder compact, but if she tried to powder away the stress lines now, she risked getting the pink powder all over the painting, and it would ruin everything she was trying to do. Weight at the top of her head had shifted over the past hour, and there was no doubt in her mind that her hairstyle had fallen a bit and was starting to get a little messy. Stress lines ran over her forehead, something she didn't need to see in order to know they were there, and the anxious energy that had built since King Boo started grumbling multiplied as she kept up her thin façade of serenity.

The pressure was on, but if he liked what he saw, she would change his entire look on the matter. She could start erasing the damage the professor had done to him and get him to take pride in how he looked on a canvas.

That was something she wanted more than anything.

A thin line of white ran behind her paintbrush as she added another highlight. The yellow of her eyes scanned each corner of the painting, searching for any other places she needed a possible highlight, checking over to make sure everything was perfect before the final reveal.

Her smile widened and she gently tucked her paintbrush and the palette off to the side. She rose from her stool, hand darting for her powder compact. With a dab of powder to her cheeks and carefully avoiding getting any pink powder on the new illustration, she stretched out her arm and beckoned King Boo to where she stood. "I have finished! Come! I hope you find it to your liking…"

With a startled noise of attention, something the Boos usually did when they were found or addressed, King Boo flew close. The annoyance was still clear on his face, and as he drew close, Hellen braced herself.

Here it was.

Hellen stepped around the painting, resting the palm of her hand gently on the top rim of the painting, her thumb pressed close to her other fingers to avoid smudging the paint. Her form felt strained, but she kept the smile on her face as King Boo settled in front of the illustration.

Moments passed, and although the Boo stayed very quiet, Hellen caught the subtle change in his face. The annoyed frown softened, the corners of his mouth lessening the downward curl they had. His mouth closed, his tongue disappearing from view, and his eyes moved as they took in each little detail.

Hellen bit her bottom lip as she let her hand fall to her side. She sided next to the Boo, her hands wringing the longer he studied it.

She had been sure to paint an idea that would knock it out of the park. King Boo, similar to how he had been painted in the first painting he had looked at, was framed in a way that made him look like the sun on the horizon. Storm clouds and lightning cracked across the top quarter of the illustration, the Boo's pose looking as though he commanded the sky to strike. Most everything underneath the Boo was a frothing, churning ocean. White foam crested on blue waves, different shades adding depth to the waters.

The silence stretched on.

After a good while, Hellen gave a tiny swallow. "…Do you like it, King Boo?"

The other ghost's mouth opened. "_I… like… it_," he said, the volume of his voice so low Hellen almost missed his words.

A mix of shock and joy crossed her face as she whipped her head to the ghost to her left. "You-"

"Yeah, I like it." The thin, soft pink line colored the area under his eyes again, and he reached out a small arm to touch the side of the painting. "I like the way I look in this. All powerful and stuff." The frown came back. "Still a little uncomfortable with it, but I like the way you painted me."

Hellen clapped her hands together as her form lifted off the ground, her dress hem whirling as she twirled. "Haha! I knew you would like it!" As she turned to face him, she held her interlinked hands close to her face and smiled. "How would you feel if I painted more portraits of you in all your glory? I have so many ideas now…"

The Boo moved his little arm away from the painting. "Sure, whatever." He floated away from the painting, waving his right arm as he grew back into his bigger stature. "Go crazy with the paintings. Make as many as you want. Just don't expect me to pose for all of them."

Her smile turned sly as decoration plans and illustration ideas flooded her mind. She bowed, one arm across her waist and the other outstretched in a lavish manner, and a rush of confidence filled her form as she looked to the other ghost. "Your wish is my command, my king…"

* * *

_Song Inspo: This probably doesn't fit them too well, but "Champagne" by Niykee Heaton got me through this fic. Also "That's What I Like" by Bruno Mars (Cabuizee Trap Remix). _

_Ahhh, I don't know why this is a lot longer than I planned, but I think I ship HellBoo a lot? Nonetheless, I had a lot of fun with this story, and I had a lot of headcanons put into this. Headcanons: Hellen made the art because she's a hobby artist; KB gets really uncomfortable at seeing himself in portraits after spending so much time in them, etc. I think I should have made the story a bit longer since the idea of KB being uncomfortable at paintings should be expanded upon, but I really wanted to focus on HellBoo and write a cute moment between them. _

_Other than that, I had fun! I don't know how many other HellBoo stories I may do in the future, but I like this couple and wouldn't mind writing for them again. :D Hope you all enjoyed! _

_XD_


End file.
